Grant Morris
Kinghorn
I’ve had a bit of a break from photography in the first half of 2016. It wasn’t really my choice but things like changing job got in the way of what I really wanted to be doing. The reality is that I could have made more of an effort to be out and about if it weren’t for the fact that I lost the use one of my favourite lenses and I’ve been struggling to find a suitable replacement.
I have used an old Sigma 17-35mm EX model for about 10 years now. I still have the lens but due to an unfortunate accident at the shorefront my kit got soaked in salt water and the inner workings of the old lens didn’t survive. This is a lens that isn’t going to win any prizes for sharpness but it had a few wonderful features that were responsible for many of my favourite images. To start with it was an F2.8 max aperture but it would step down to F42 when I needed it. Most new lenses won’t go past f22 so having that extra ability to shut out the light meant I could get long exposures without the need for an ND filter. The second thing I liked was the parallel configuration of aperture blades meaning that the sunburst effect produced a simple flare with 6 legs in a hexagonal pattern. Most new lenses use an uneven number of curved blades for a soft bokeh but that produces a much more complicated sunburst. Pros and cons… And finally that old lens was excellent at resisting flare which when shooting sunrise and sunset shots is pretty critical.
Why am I mentioning all of this? Well I finally committed to the purchase of a new super-wide lens. After spending months researching all the latest and greatest developments in wide lenses I could not find a suitable replacement that met all my criteria. I finally decided to compromise and buy the best alternative I could get. I decided I had to have the new Canon 11-24 F4 L ultrawide. And then after seeing the price of the 11-24 I immediately decided I needed something else that would not break the bank and/or become grounds for divorce. I finally settled on the Canon 16-35 F4 L IS.
So to the point at last! Today’s post is my first attempt at a shot with the new lens. There are a few things I’m not sure about. That sunburst doesn’t have the nice diamond centre and hex protrusions I like to see and there is a fair bit of colour from lens flare in the foreground. On the plus side the details in the image are a LOT sharper than I could get from the old Sigma.
I’ll need to get out and use this lens a lot more before I’m ready to make my mind up. Feedback and comments welcome.
Kinghorn
I’ve had a bit of a break from photography in the first half of 2016. It wasn’t really my choice but things like changing job got in the way of what I really wanted to be doing. The reality is that I could have made more of an effort to be out and about if it weren’t for the fact that I lost the use one of my favourite lenses and I’ve been struggling to find a suitable replacement.
I have used an old Sigma 17-35mm EX model for about 10 years now. I still have the lens but due to an unfortunate accident at the shorefront my kit got soaked in salt water and the inner workings of the old lens didn’t survive. This is a lens that isn’t going to win any prizes for sharpness but it had a few wonderful features that were responsible for many of my favourite images. To start with it was an F2.8 max aperture but it would step down to F42 when I needed it. Most new lenses won’t go past f22 so having that extra ability to shut out the light meant I could get long exposures without the need for an ND filter. The second thing I liked was the parallel configuration of aperture blades meaning that the sunburst effect produced a simple flare with 6 legs in a hexagonal pattern. Most new lenses use an uneven number of curved blades for a soft bokeh but that produces a much more complicated sunburst. Pros and cons… And finally that old lens was excellent at resisting flare which when shooting sunrise and sunset shots is pretty critical.
Why am I mentioning all of this? Well I finally committed to the purchase of a new super-wide lens. After spending months researching all the latest and greatest developments in wide lenses I could not find a suitable replacement that met all my criteria. I finally decided to compromise and buy the best alternative I could get. I decided I had to have the new Canon 11-24 F4 L ultrawide. And then after seeing the price of the 11-24 I immediately decided I needed something else that would not break the bank and/or become grounds for divorce. I finally settled on the Canon 16-35 F4 L IS.
So to the point at last! Today’s post is my first attempt at a shot with the new lens. There are a few things I’m not sure about. That sunburst doesn’t have the nice diamond centre and hex protrusions I like to see and there is a fair bit of colour from lens flare in the foreground. On the plus side the details in the image are a LOT sharper than I could get from the old Sigma.
I’ll need to get out and use this lens a lot more before I’m ready to make my mind up. Feedback and comments welcome.